The air in the clearing was thick with the scent of blood and burnt wood. The bodies strewn across the ground were still fresh, their wounds deep and brutal. Aria forced herself to breathe through her mouth, resisting the urge to gag as she took in the carnage before her.
Dante stood beside her, unmoving, his sharp blue eyes scanning the area like he was committing every detail to memory. He knelt beside one of the bodies, brushing his fingers over the torn fabric of the dead man’s shirt.
“These aren’t rogues,” he muttered.
Aria swallowed hard. “Then who are they?”
Dante turned the body over, revealing a deep claw mark across the man’s chest, cutting through the leather armor he wore. His face was frozen in an expression of pain, his lips slightly parted as if he had been mid-scream when he died.
“They were fighters,” Dante said. “Well-trained. This armor is reinforced—military grade.”
Her stomach twisted. “Shadow Order?”
Dante shook his head. “Maybe. But something’s off.”
Aria crouched down beside another corpse, forcing herself to ignore the growing unease clawing at her chest. The man was older, his hair streaked with silver, but he had the same unfamiliar crest sewn into his tunic. She traced her fingers over the fabric, trying to place it.
A jagged circle. A wolf’s skull.
She had never seen it before.
“What does this symbol mean?” she asked, glancing at Dante.
He studied it, his brows pulling together in a frown. “I don’t know.”
A chill ran down her spine. If Dante didn’t recognize it, that meant these people weren’t part of any known pack or faction.
They were something else.
Dante straightened, his body tense. “We need to go. Now.”
Aria followed his gaze, scanning the shadows that stretched between the trees. There was nothing there.
But she felt it.
The unmistakable sensation of being watched.
A predator’s gaze.
She rose to her feet, her hand instinctively reaching for the dagger at her thigh. “We’re not alone.”
Dante didn’t hesitate. He reached for her wrist, pulling her toward the tree line. “Move. Quietly.”
They slipped through the forest, their footsteps barely making a sound. The deeper they went, the thicker the trees became, creating a canopy that blocked out most of the moonlight.
But the feeling didn’t fade.
If anything, it grew stronger.
Aria’s pulse quickened. “Whoever did that back there…” She hesitated. “They’re still here.”
Dante didn’t respond, but his grip on her wrist tightened.
A branch snapped behind them.
Aria spun around, dagger raised.
Nothing.
The silence pressed against her ears, heavy and oppressive.
Then—
A low growl.
Deep. Guttural.
Not a wolf.
Not human.
Something in between.
A shape moved between the trees.
Aria barely caught a glimpse—a blur of shadow, glowing amber eyes, something too fast to be natural.
Her breath hitched. “Dante.”
“I see it.”
The air grew colder. The presence thickened, curling around them like smoke.
Then—
A figure stepped into the light.
Tall. Lithe. Unnatural.
His body was humanoid but wrong. His limbs were too long, his fingers ending in sharp, curved claws. His skin was ashen, grayish-blue, and when he smiled—
His teeth were too sharp.
Too many.
Aria’s breath hitched. “What the hell is that?”
Dante didn’t answer.
The creature tilted its head, its glowing eyes locking onto her. “You smell different.”
Its voice was distorted, layered, as if more than one voice spoke at the same time.
Aria’s grip on her dagger tightened. “Who are you?”
The creature took a slow step forward, its clawed feet barely making a sound against the forest floor.
“You don’t know, do you?” It chuckled, the sound dry and unnatural. “You don’t know what you are.”
Aria’s stomach twisted.
Dante stepped in front of her, his dagger already drawn. “We’re leaving.”
The creature didn’t move. “You can try.”
And then—
It attacked.
Dante moved first, fast—but the creature was faster. It lunged, its claws slicing through the air where Dante had been just seconds before. He twisted, barely dodging, and struck out with his blade.
The creature caught the dagger mid-air with its bare hand.
Aria barely had time to react before it threw Dante aside like he weighed nothing.
He crashed against a tree, letting out a pained grunt.
Rage flashed through her.
She moved.
Her dagger struck deep, plunging into the creature’s shoulder.
It let out a sharp, inhuman snarl, its amber eyes snapping to her in shock.
Then—it smiled.
Aria’s blood ran cold.
The creature grabbed her wrist, yanking her forward. Its strength was unbelievable, like her bones would snap beneath its grip.
It leaned in close, its breath chilling against her skin. “You were supposed to be ours.”
Something inside her snapped.
Heat rushed through her veins, a surge of power unlike anything she had ever felt.
A voice inside her whispered.
Fight.
Her body moved on instinct. Her other hand shot forward, her fingers wrapping around the dagger’s hilt—and she twisted the blade.
The creature let out a snarl of pain, jerking back.
She ripped the dagger free, dark blood spraying across the ground.
The creature staggered, its glowing eyes burning with something almost like… surprise.
Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared—
It vanished.
Silence fell.
Aria’s chest heaved, her pulse thundering in her ears.
Dante pushed himself to his feet, wincing as he wiped blood from his mouth. “What… the hell… was that?”
Aria swallowed hard, her hands still shaking. “I don’t know.”
But deep down, a terrible realization settled in her gut.
Lucian had said she wasn’t alone.
And maybe—
Maybe he was right.